Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-01-08
HAULS AND POOLS.
Status of the Bill 10 Regulate One and
Abolish The Other-Railr8Sd Men
Wake Up Too Late.
An Iowa Senator's Views as to the Fairness
of the Measure for Regulating
Railroad Eusint SIS.
Cincinnati ENQUIRER.

WASHINGTON, Jan. with the reas-
sembling of congress the feeling grows
that the Interstate commerce bill will be-
come law. First let its position be IN
derstood and the syllabus of the case as
it now is. Two bills on the subject were
pending. One was known az the Rea9 an
bill, which was iavorably reported
by the commerce committee. The
other was known as the Cullom
bill, which the senate passed Just proceed
ing its adjournment st the last session.
The house IhereupOn passed the Reagan
bill. The senate insisted upon its own
| or the Cull0m bill, and conference COM
mittee was appointed tC reconcile the ols-
agreements between the two houses.
Early in December, before congress met,
the conference managers met. Senator
Cullom was at the head of the senate's
managers, and Mr.. Reagan for those of the
house. For several days it looked as
though the differences were irreconcil-
able, and the inner secrets OF the COM
mittee disclosed considerable ruction.
Finally Reagan melloWed and yielded
to the extent of practically accepting
the senate bill. The report of the
conference managers must first be acted
upon in the senate, because the bill origi-
rated there. 1t is not in order to amend
conference report. 1t must be accepted
either as whole or rejected as whole.
If rejected, it is in the power of the senate
to order new conference.
The subject Of Interstate commerce
has long attracted the attention of con-
gress, but up to this year the railroad
managers were not seriously impressed
with the belief that legislation was i'm
pending. Hence they gave little atten-
ton to it, and now at the eleventh hour
with the bill in position where it can
not even be amended, they realize that
its passage is quite probable. 1t is the
old story of locking the stable after the
horse I as galloped out.
Senator Wilson of Iowa, who knows
something of railroad affairs, having been
government director in the Union Pa
citic road, said to your correspondent to-
night that in his Judgment the bill would
pass. 81 don't see," SAID he, chow any,I
Western senator can vote against it. 1t
is something that must come. The recent
decision of the supreme court almost
commanded congress to take hold of the
SUBJECT.
"What was that?" asked.
stIG was an Illinois case. The state of |
Illinois has railroad commission. 1t
undertook to regulate the charges of |
freight from poins not only within the |
state but from points within the state to |
points without. The railroads took the |
ground that the state commissioners
could not regulate beyond the limits of |
the state, and the supre me court took the |
same view, holding that it was interstate /
commerce, to be regulated by congress.
Hence, with the states powerless, con-
gress must assert itself"
"What DO you think OF the pending
biI?''
81 think it is fair bill. / think it |
ought to become q law, and that it will.
If those managing railrosd interests
would study their own advantages they |
would not antagonize it, for a bill of
more sweeping character would come in
the future. Take my own state Of Iowa.
At times we have large crop